Funding for recovering addicts cut

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THE State Government has been criticised for stopping funding
for a drug program in community health centres.

It has also been accused of failing to support GPs offering the
program for recovering heroin addicts in private clinics.

More than 10,500 Victorians use the methadone and buprenorphine
program as a safer alternative to heroin.

The Government has provided $1.2 million in grants to 11
community health centres since 2002-03 as an incentive to offer the
pharmacotherapy program. Other community health centres also
provide the program, but did not receive grants. Only two centres
have received the grants this financial year.

The community health centres use the money to provide support
for doctors and to cover administration costs. Medicare covers the
cost of treating the client. There are 440 approved providers of
the program in the state and GPs must undergo training.

The Government has also been accused of failing to provide GPs
with an incentive to offer the program.

The chairman of the Royal Australian College of General
Practitioners Victorian drug and alcohol committee, Michael
Aufgang, said GPs in private clinics provided most of the methadone
programs, but did not receive any State Government funding. He said
the Government should provide funds for support staff, such as
psychologists, social workers and case managers, who were vital in
treating clients.

"When are they going to start to fund community GPs and support
them in their desire to service the needs of the patients in a
structured manner?"

North Yarra Community Health chief executive Vera Boston said
the centre had been forced to stop taking new clients a few months
ago. It is now seeing about five new clients a week.

Ms Boston said many GPs who were trained were reluctant to take
part in the program because they feared their clients might be
disruptive to other patients.

Inner East Community Health Service chief executive Rod Wilson
said the centre would try to maintain the service without the
funding.

"It will be difficult because it actually costs extra resources
to deal with this issue," he said. "It's a really important program
and it's proved very effective, so we think the State Government
should continue to provide money for it."

Darebin Community Health, which will continue to receive funds
until next financial year, also expects to have some difficulty in
providing its service once the money runs out.

The Department of Human Services says the grants were always
intended to be one-off payments. A spokesman said: "The idea was to
set these up so that they would be self-sustaining, not us getting
involved to the extent that we keep them running all the time."

Turning Point Drug and Alcohol Centre director Nick Crofts said
the program was the most effective for heroin dependence. "The
longer people stay on the methadone, the more likely they are to be
drug-free in the longer term," he said.